During their ninth consecutive triumph at the 2023 ICC World Cup, which came against the Netherlands today (12 November) in Bengaluru, India used as many as nine bowlers while defending a total of 410 runs. Of those nine were skipper Rohit Sharma himself, and the former captain, Virat Kohli.
Interestingly, both Rohit and Virat ended up getting wickets. The latter dismissed the opposition’s skipper, Scott Edwards, to register his fifth ODI wicket and his first since 2014. He bowled three overs, conceding only 13 runs.
Rohit, on the contrary, bowled only five deliveries, but it was enough to fetch him the wicket of Netherlands’ leading scorer in this game – Teja Nidamanuru. This was the Indian captain’s first ODI wicket since 2012.
Besides the pair, Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav also bowled a couple of overs each. On being asked about the logic behind this decision, Rohit opined “The sixth bowler is something that is always in our mind. We want to create those options in the team. Today we had nine options – it is important. This was the game where we could have tried certain things.”
Notably, India are currently playing with five proper bowling options since all-rounder Hardik Pandya got injured. Ahead of the semi-final against New Zealand, the emphasis was on testing a few options for the vacant sixth bowler’s role.
Very Pleased With How We Have Performed: Rohit Sharma
As for the match, India registered a comprehensive 160-run triumph, and also became the first bunch from the country to record nine consecutive wins in a single edition of the ODI World Cup.
Speaking on the team’s performance, Rohit said “I’m very pleased with how we've played in these nine games. It was very clinical from game one to today. Different individuals have stepped up and put their hand up and done the job. Everyone wanted to take the responsibility. Playing in different venues was a challenge. We adapted really well. We started the tournament four games in a row chasing, and then we had to bat first and the pacers did the job along with the spinners.”
On being asked about the environment in the dressing room, he added “The results do matter, to keep the dressing room lively. It is one thing to talk about it but for everyone to buy into it is very important. We enjoy each other's company. We wanted to play with enjoyment on the field. We try to keep the atmosphere outside lively.”
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